Unmasked questions

Delhi police's variable responses require explanation

Two decisions by the Delhi police roughly three weeks apart raise serious questions. On December 15, during a protest against the Citizens’ Amendment Act that spilled over to the students of Jamia Millia Islamia, the Delhi police chose to exercise great zeal in pursuing miscreants, who were not students, into the campus. They proceeded to beat up students indiscriminately, fire tear gas shells in the library, and even storm the women’s hostel. But on January 5, they failed to display similar zeal when a masked mob armed with sticks, bottles, and iron rods rampaged through Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) for